Cross-border integration and social representation: the binational bridge and the boatman on the Franco-Brazilian border

: This paper discusses cross-border projects and their respective social representations to local groups. We present as a case study the boatmen who pilot their boats between Brazil and France on the construction of the Binational Bridge. Catraieiros are currently responsible for much of the logistics between Amapá and French Guiana. Our theoretical framework is based on the literature on Regional Integration and Social Representation. We applied interviews to one third of the catraieiros. We concluded that in the Subject-Representation-Object relationship, the group that understood itself as responsible for the dialogue between two cities built a negative and threatening representation on the Bridge.


Introduction
This study 1 aims to discuss the cross-border integrating projects and their respective social representations to local groups. As a case study, we present the social representation of boatmen who drive their catraias between Brazil and France on the construction of the Binational Bridge.
The catraieiros are currently responsible for much of the logistics between Amapá and the French Overseas Department of French Guiana. The bridge is between the cities of Oiapoque (Brazil) and Saint-George de l'Oyapock (French Guiana) in the Amazon region of the Guiana Plateau. We present the following guiding questions: how is the representation of local actors placed as a variable in the construction of cross-border projects? What does the Binational Bridge represent for catraieiros? What are the possible consequences in the existence of representation conflicts over the same object? Our theoretical framework is based on literature about regional integration (International Relations) and social representation (Social Sciences). In our field work, we used as a methodology semi-structured interviews applied to fifty catraieiros in the city of Oiapoque and Saint-George, which is approximately one third of the community in the researched group 2 .

Brief theoretical debate on Regional Integration
Since the 1980s, the regionalization of States' foreign policy has become a stronger tendency, especially with the end of the Cold War. These processes are associated with economic issues based on free trade agreements, such as NAFTA or MERCOSUR. In the past three decades, they have become more comprehensive, transcending the economy and comprising political, cultural, historical and international security elements. The integration between different States from a region may show great diversity in its conformation process. The idea of region itself, usually linked to geographic limits, will present variations with what we are trying to understand (SARAIVA, 2013). We can define a region based on economic, social, political, historical, religious, cultural dimensions. The degree of interdependence of these dimensions, taken individually or as a whole, can serve as a basis for a definition of a region and regionalism. The determinant way in which political actors perceive and interpret the concept of region is also decisive for its construction. When referring to political actors, States form the fundamental but not The theoretical analysis of regionalism is inserted within the debates between different theoretical perspectives of International Relations. Systemic elements and domestic factors are considered with different intensities in the different theories that analyze contemporary regionalism.
Between the 1970s and 1980s, three theories stand out in the theoretical debate on International Relations: Neorealism, Neoliberalism and Constructivism (MARIANO, 2007). Other theoretical perspectives were present in the debate on regionalism, however these three predominated and considerably influenced studies and decision-making in international politics.
When starting the theoretical debate, we need to pay attention to the meaning of the concepts (terms) used in this discussion, that is, region, regionalism, and finally, regional integration. To the layperson, the first two appear as relatively close, but they are relatively ambiguous and therefore the consensus on the concept is still lacking in the area of international relations (HURRELL, 2000). One of the starting points for analyzing the concept is to start from the geographical definition of the concept to refine it. We need to consider disputes around the issue of deterritorialization within geography (AGNEW, 1996;TAYLOR, 1996).
Nevertheless, we realize that we are still "hostages" to the limits guided by geographical premises, making the concept more abstract and therefore, more difficult to interpret. As mentioned before, we need the etymological tool to understand the concept. The word "region" finds its origin in the Latin regio, used to determine a distinct administrative or geographical area. Another source indicates that the word regere has the meaning of commanding or governing, thus having similarities in the definition (TAVARES, 2004). Therefore, we observe that a geographical definition can assume a political content (SODERBAUM & SHAW, 2003), which does not exclude the fact that there are semantic disputes and disputes based on the fact that natural rules exist. According to the constructivist view, the regions are elements marked by the social construct before being considered, geographically, as delimited and natural territories (KATZENSTEIN, 1996). This view gained recognition in the mid-1990s, when States began to lose recognition in the face of international organizations. We can also consider another view of the role of the regions, taking the degree of internal cohesion as the main criterion.
Thus, constructivist literature emphasizes the role of social interactions, such as language, culture, ethnicity, or a common cultural heritage. There are also political elements, such as institutions, ideology, or even regimes, and finally economic components (options in international trade and formal arrangements in the integration process). In short, we can say that both constructivists, institutionalists and realists recognize the importance of the State as a driving force in the regions. The initial studies by K. Deutsche et al. (1957), J. Nye (1968), followed by P.
Katzenstein or Buzan & Waever (2003) clarify that their definitions do not relinquish the State to determine the criteria of the region. Therefore, we consider that the regions are not diminished representations of the international system.

The importance of the Brazil-French Guiana (France) relationship
French Guiana (FG) is one of the French Overseas Departments (France d'Outre-Mer). Its area is approximately 84,000 km² and is inserted within the Transnational Amazon and has a low population density (3.2 people per km² in 2016). Its department-region status means that the political administration of French Guiana has a Regional Council (Conseil Régional de la Guyane -Région) and a General Council (Conseil Général de la Guyane -département) that grant it limited autonomy in the Department's relationship with countries in the region.
CORREA, Paulo Gustavo Pellegrino; DHENIN, Miguel Patrice Philippe. Cross-border integration and social representation: the binational bridge and the boatman on the Franco-Brazilian border Dossiê French Guiana shows a peculiar situation in multiple aspects. As a French Department, it is part of the European Union. However, as we can see on the map below, with all its territory within the Amazon region and with a population concentrated on its Atlantic coast, the Department is very close to a Caribbean territory, as well as its neighbors Guyana and Suriname. Among the reasons for this situation, we can highlight the struggle of the South American subcontinent in relating to an European country in regional integration processes. We can see this in CORREA, Paulo Gustavo Pellegrino; DHENIN, Miguel Patrice Philippe. Cross-border integration and social representation: the binational bridge and the boatman on the Franco-Brazilian border Dossiê decades, cooperation initiatives have sought to bring these territories closer together. Silva (2013) highlights that: It is noticeable, however, that this variation remained much more on cooperation intents. In such a context, it is clear that we live in a moment of expectations. These are expectations for a new page in Brazil-France cross-border relations. The current moment, in fact, is characterized by tests of this cross-border cooperation. This brings us to a moment that is being structured to what we call Proto-Cooperation, a type of cooperation prototype with clear and substantial results, which has structures aimed eminently for its evolution. (SILVA, 2013, p. 240) In this proto-cooperation, we want to draw attention to the project of strong logistical value According to Moscovici, social representations make the world what we think it is or should be. Social groups are established based on their own ideas, history, social role, and rules. These are the elements that construct the identity that distinguish them from other groups of the societies they are inserted. Among the catalysts in the formation of a social group, or local actors as we often use in this text, the work developed by a group can be its forming element. The developed work or craft places a group in a role in its society, in a social class that establishes access and limits on consumption, ascension, or importance in its place. Araújo (2008) highlights that: When the elements of collective identity are questioned or underestimated, a new process begins: the emergence of social representations. For Moscovici (1961), social representations are the group's response to external interventions that endanger its collective identity, that is, the way the group sees itself and wants to be seen by others. (ARAÚJO, 2008, p.100, free translation) This means that social groups conform a set of information about the reality they are inserted. To Moscovici: Social representation is an organized corpus of knowledge and one of the psychical activities that allow human beings to make physical and social reality intelligible, to insert themselves into groups or day-to-day relations of exchange and to free the powers of their imagination. (MOSCOVICI, 1961, p. 28) Other authors also used social representations as a theoretical and methodological basis for their study. According to Denise Jodelet, social representation, "is a form of knowledge, socially CORREA, Paulo Gustavo Pellegrino; DHENIN, Miguel Patrice Philippe. Cross-border integration and social representation: the binational bridge and the boatman on the Franco-Brazilian border Dossiê elaborated and shared, with a practical objective, and that contributes to the construction of a common reality to a social group" (JODELET, 1993, p. 53, free translation). Therefore, we need to understand the relationships between, on the one hand, the conditions of production and circulation of social representations (such as culture, language, and society) and, on the other hand, the epistemological status of social representations (value of truth, representations and real, and value of reality). To illustrate this concept, we can observe the detailed analysis performed in the chart "Study spaces in social representations" that summarizes the process of building representations between the subject and the object. It is important to note that an ideal model is accepted, in the Weberian sense understood in social sciences.

Chart 01: Social Representations
Source: JODELET, 1993, p. 60 In this same line of thought, Wachelke and Camargo indicate that: "a representation is not a reliable copy of some object existing in the objective reality, but a collective construction in which the group's knowledge structures re-create the object based on already existing representations, replacing it" (WACHELKE & CAMARGO, 2007, p. 380, free translation). Since it is not a reliable copy, it means that a noise happens between perceptions of reality. A difference between scientific knowledge and common sense, hegemonic knowledge and common sense. The decision to build a bridge between two territories as a project for regional approximation by two States, a project that can strengthen economy and interactions in general between territories, is a hegemonic perception.
CORREA, Paulo Gustavo Pellegrino; DHENIN, Miguel Patrice Philippe. Cross-border integration and social representation: the binational bridge and the boatman on the Franco-Brazilian border Dossiê Such perception is not necessarily shared by other groups that are affected by the given project. A common sense that can be constructed in the perspective of a group about this object (the bridge).
Therefore, it is important to realize that the process of capturing this common sense is done through the theory of social representation, in which qualitative interviews are considered to be something fundamental. It was from this theoretical basis that part of the field research study was conducted with the catraeiros. The data collected by Crété (2015) shows that the majority of users frequently use the catraia. In the dynamics of the three cities (Oiapoque, Saint George and Vila Vitória) more than six thousand trips are made. An expressive number when comparing with the population density of these cities. As we can see in the image below, another important piece of information is about the change of the traveling habits after the opening of the bridge. Most users will use the catraias more often and the reasons are linked to cost, agility, and comfort. The profession of catraieiro is very old and important in the region as it represents the great part of the transport between the two countries. 48% of respondents have worked for more than 10 years and 28% of them between 7-10 years. The number of people who depend on the income of each catraieiro is also expressive. Families composed of 6-8 people are 64% of respondents and families composed of 3-4 people represent 26% as we can see in the tables below.   Brazil on the other side (Saint George)". The catraieiro also states that "we bring the strength of Guyana to Oiapoque" in reference to the trade that they enable due to the transport. Their perception of changes from the bridge also reveals the daily impact. According to Ratinho, "before the construction of the bridge we walked (in Saint George) as if we were here (Oiapoque)". After the construction, according to the catraieiro, policing became overt. The most conflicting moment of this policing that prevented the circulation of Brazilians without visas and, consequently, compromised the work of the catraieiros happened in January 2012. During this period, a series of protests resulted in arrests and even the death of a catraeiro in an accident on the movements. A direct representation of the bridge with the French control of a peaceful relationship.

Final considerations
The meaning of a bridge shows the possibility of positive representations when it comes to a project between States. However, the design and development formats of the integrating projects can impact the representations of other affected actors. This occurs mainly when there is an absence of popular consultation, impact studies, and the construction of policies to minimize them. The history of the Binational Bridge is filled with these absences. In the relationship between Subject (Catraieiros) -Representation -Object (Binational Bridge), the group that understood itself as responsible for the interlocution between two cities separated by a river shows, according to our data, a negative and threatening representation of Bridge. As we mentioned, a representation is not a reliable copy of an existing object in objective reality, but a collective construction in which the group's knowledge structures re-create the object.
The bridge is recreated with negative meanings and inequality. This last element, connected to the lack of reciprocity in visas and circulation of cars and in the possibility of the dynamics of the bridge "skipping" Oiapoque. The percentage of perceptions that we raised in our interviews with catraieiros about the bridge indicates a construction of collective representation of an object that affects them. This object is the result of a policy between States in a region where the national and the international meet, where the "we" and the "others" are established by the principles of international relations. The negative, threat or unilateral representation of the benefits of this object, an integrating project, can compromise the construction of positive relationships in the dynamics between the different actors that constitute the situation, local groups and States.
CORREA, Paulo Gustavo Pellegrino; DHENIN, Miguel Patrice Philippe. Cross-border integration and social representation: the binational bridge and the boatman on the Franco-Brazilian border Dossiê